Loaded Bhangra Review

A more compact dancing/freestyle deck, the Loaded Bhangra is a funny-looking board that offers a plenty of foot space to get your dancing groove on and yet is compact and lightweight enough to facilitate steezy slides and advanced flatland tricks. One of the first things you’d probably notice, besides its honking large 48.5 inches of length, is the nice flex to it. The mellow concave and damp flex – created in part by the use of epoxy bio-resin and cork – leverages comfortable and functional ergonomics that inspire confidence on both the dance floor and the hills.

Putting aside the funny shape and look, the actual wood and finish is just beautiful. You may or may not like the bottom graphics but the fact that they are burnt-in instead of printed is excellent. Another plus is that the complete board arrives COMPLETE, which means everything you need is there, all the way down to bearing specs. The first thing that struck as amazing is the turning radius and response. For a board this long, the turning is quite tight and the response is quick. Also, the extra stiffness of the Bhangra combined with its top-mount status allows for quick response which more than makes up for the turning lost to the extra length.

Pros

The Bhangra is arguably the Loaded’s most organic board to date, being precisely created from bamboo, cork and epoxy bio-resin. Though no fiberglass has been used in the board, it still retains its strength and flex, thanks to its two core of vertically-laminated bamboo with cork in the middle that allows for weight reduction and dampening.

This is a more compact dancing/freestyle board that you can basically do everything on. The board has ample room to get your dancing groove on and is smaller, lighter, and easier to throw around.

The rocker really sinks you into the board and gives you that extra cushy, locked in feel, allowing you to sling it around when you’re cross stepping and peter panning your way through all 48.5 inches of this deck.

The board feels great for dancing, makes sliding a lot easier and more comfortable, and puts the board lower to the ground, making pushing slightly easier.

The added mellow “U” concave gives you more confidence when sliding and also helps lock your feet in when landing big spins and such but is still mellow and comfortable enough for footwork moves.

The tail of the board is much longer than the nose of the board which takes some getting used to but both tails ate super functional. More nose and tail curvatures allow for easier catching of the nose and tail. Both the tail and nose will lock your feet in nicely for manuals, but the different lengths result in distinct feelings of balance and pop.

For the standing platform, Loaded used a mellower grip with a functional pattern to save your shoes. The cutout grip design allows for great spinning moves. Loaded used a gnarlier, gripper grip tape on the nose and tail to help give you that extra locked in sensation when holding out manuals. The extra grip also makes it easier to catch the nose and tail for quick shuvit-to-manual moves.

The specially designed wheel wells can accommodate several brands of 180mm trucks and 70mm wheels without risers, which will prevent wheelbite in most circumstances.

The combination of tech construction, well thought through shape, and excellent choice of components makes for a great board that is freakishly fun to ride even at slower speeds.

Cons

The tape on the kicks has more grip than the grip tape on the main standing platform, however, the cutouts in the tape are much bigger on the Bhangra.

While the weight is not actually a deal-breaker, the board is undeniably heavy and bulky.

The Bhangra is not a symmetrical board. The tail of the board is much longer than the nose of the board, which takes some getting used to.

The Bottom Line

For an asymmetrical board, the Loaded Bhangra has its ups and downs. The first thing you’d notice is the weight of the Bhangra which takes a lot to get moving and carrying it around. However, once you get used to it, you’re unstoppable. It strikes a perfect balance between the benefits of a longer top-mount with the qualities of a shorter board that slides almost as easily as a drop-through. Coming to the price, you get what you pay for. All in all, the Bhangra is a very fine board which is built to last.

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